Category: Hard Drive

Fixsmart is a leading Hard Drive Repair service in Niddrie and caters for all suburbs. We want to educate and provide the latest news on new Computer Repairs and Hard Drive Services.

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World Backup Day: Importance of Doing It

We’re a bit behind World Backup Day, but still, it’s an important topic to discuss. 

In a world where data is everything, the importance of data backup cannot be overstated. Data backup is simply the process of creating a copy of your data in case the original is lost or damaged. 

Every year, on March 31st, the world celebrates World Backup Day to remind people of the importance of data backup and to encourage them to take action to protect their data. In this article, we’ll explore the importance of data backup and why it’s essential for individuals and businesses alike.

What is Data Backup?

Data backup is the process of creating a copy of your data and storing it in a separate location. This could be an external hard drive, a cloud storage service, or even a physical backup like a tape or disk. Data backup can be done manually or automatically, depending on your needs and preferences.

Types of Data Backup

There are several types of data backup, including:

Full backup: A complete copy of all your data

Incremental backup: A replica of just the information that has changed since the last backup. 

Differential backup: A copy of all the data that has changed since the last full backup

The type of backup you choose will depend on your specific needs and requirements.

Why is Data Backup Important?

Data backup is crucial for several reasons, including:

Protection Against Data Loss

Data loss can occur for various reasons, such as hardware failure, software corruption, or accidental deletion. Losing your data can be catastrophic, especially if you don’t have a backup. With a backup, you can restore your data quickly and easily, minimising downtime and preventing data loss.

Recovery from Disasters

Natural disasters like floods, fires, and earthquakes can damage or destroy your hardware and data. With a backup, you can restore your data to a new device or location and continue your operations.

Prevention of Data Breaches

Data breaches can occur when unauthorised persons gain access to your data. This could be due to hacking, phishing, or malware attacks. With a backup, you can restore your data to a previous state before the breach occurred, minimising the impact of the attack.

Consequences of Not Backing Up Data

The consequences of not backing up your data can be severe, including:

Financial Loss

Losing your data can be costly, especially for businesses. According to a study by IBM, the average cost of a data breach is $3.86 million. This includes the cost of lost business, legal fees, and remediation costs.

Time and Productivity Loss

Restoring your data can take time, especially if you don’t have a backup. This downtime can affect your productivity and revenue, especially for businesses.

Irreplaceable Data Loss

Some data is irreplaceable, such as family photos, important documents, or sentimental items. Losing these can be devastating, and without a backup, there’s no way to recover them.

Best Practices for Data Backup

To ensure the best protection for your data, follow these best practices:

Regular Backups

Perform regular backups of your data, depending on how frequently you update it. This could be daily, weekly, or monthly.

Multiple Backup Locations

Store your backups in multiple locations, such as an external hard drive and a cloud storage service. This ensures that you have access to your data, even if one location is unavailable.

Verification of Backups

Verify your backups regularly to ensure that they’re complete and accurate. This will prevent data loss and minimise the risk of corruption.

Encryption and Security

Ensure that your backups are encrypted and secured to prevent unauthorised access. Use strong passwords and two-factor authentication to protect your data.

Conclusion 

Data backup is essential for protecting your data, whether you’re an individual or a business. With the rise of cyber threats and data breaches, it’s more important than ever to ensure that your data is secure and backed up regularly. 

World Backup Day serves as a reminder of the importance of data backup and encourages people to take action to protect their data. By following best practices for data backup and using reliable backup solutions, you can prevent data loss, minimise downtime, and protect your valuable data. So, let’s celebrate World Backup Day by backing up our data and encouraging others to do the same, while also keeping reliable repair services like Fixsmart Tech in mind for any device-related needs.

 

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Hard Drive Slow and Inaccessible? You May Be Able to Repair It

The hard disk or hard drive is the primary storage device of your computer. It is also one of the key components to run your system. And while computer hardware has come a long way from HDDs to SSDs, it can be troublesome if your primary hardware fails.

But don’t worry, whether your disk drive is completely inaccessible or has just slowed down, in this article, we will go through every possible solution you can use to recover your data.

And we are confident that by the end of this article, you will be able to prevent data loss and a perfect drive recovery without any issues. So without further ado, let’s dive into the details, shall we?

Problems and Solutions for Hard Drive Failings

Now, we can’t discuss the solutions unless we figure out what is causing the problems in the first place. And there are quite a few reasons behind hard drives’ slow speed and inaccessibility.

The most common issues behind hard disk failings are:

Corrupted Files

The first and the most common issue behind storage device issues are corrupted files. You can become a victim of corrupted files for a lot of reasons. But the most common ones are:

  • The spread of computer viruses.
  • Shutting down the windows prematurely.
  • Forcing a windows program to shut down.

Suppose this is the case for your file systems slowing down. Then you can start by doing a proper reboot of your computer. Sometimes your file system will automatically restore itself, and you won’t have to do anything.
But if that doesn’t work, you can install any anti-malware software to check if viruses are the issue behind the slow down. If that’s not the case, then you will have to manually repair the corrupted files through the command prompt of your windows or macOS.

To do this on windows, go to the windows/start button and type ‘cmd.’ Soon, a black window will pop up. You will need to type ‘chkdsk g:/f; this is a hard drive checking and repair code. Hit enter and the computer will start the data recovery and repair process right away.

If you still face this problem, you have no other option to recover your data other than using the external hard drive transfer method. You will need to download a hard drive recovery software (if you are using windows, the windows installer also comes with a recovery option). You’ll also have to connect it via an external device like external hard disks, pen drives, or even your phone’s storage.

Keep in mind that you will need to make the external device bootable to perform this without accessing the interface. This is extremely useful if you can’t access your operating system due to a hard disk failure.

Once you run the recovery software, the drive recovery process will begin, and all of your essential data will be recovered to access the OS like you used to before. The success rate for this operation is higher than the in-built disk drive recovery system that your OS comes with.

Physical Hardware Issues

Sometimes, physical issues are why your hard drive fails to function correctly. Manufacturing defects are also quite common in hard disks. If that is the case, then you can contact the manufacturer and should be able to get a replacement if you still have your warranty.

On the other hand, if you have physically damaged the hard drive, you can’t do much but send them for repairs. Also, hard drives tend to work slowly because of overheating.

And in this case, the disk drive isn’t the one to blame. Because overheating can be caused by a humid environment, not having proper airflow in the casing of your computer or laptop, or simply running applications that your system can’t handle.

So, to counter these issues, first of all, make sure that the airflow inside your case is optimal. You can find out about the optimal environmental condition of your hard drive from the manufacturer’s website.

Check the system requirements of your currently running applications, and if you find some that require high-quality system requirements compared to yours, then remove them from your device.

Update Your Operating System

This is a very rare case, but sometimes, when a new update comes for an OS, updating to the more recent version can be beneficial for smoother disk drive and file systems management. So, if you are facing lag, we recommend updating your OS and seeing if it fixes the problem.

Final Thoughts

Hard drive problems can be a drag if you don’t know how to solve them. If you follow the mentioned solutions for hard drive slow and inaccessible issues, then unless there is some major physical issue on the drive, you will be able to access your data just fine.

So, be careful and try every solution to solve your hard drive’s issue. Best of luck!

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Will Repairing My Hard Drive Cause Me to Lose My Data?

You can find numerous techniques to repair a corrupted hard drive, whether internal or external. The quickest technique to fix a faulty hard drive is to format it, which will result in data loss. Because data loss is common during hard drive repair, if you have crucial data on the faulty hard drive, you should try to recover it first.

You may recover all lost files and a major amount of data that has been formatted from your wrecked hard drive using data recovery software like EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard, Disk Drill, and others.

These software makes it simple to recover your sole copies of essential papers, assignment files, treasured images, movies, and other associated material that have been lost from your device’s external and internal storage.

What Goes Wrong with a Hard Drive?

While working on your laptop or computer, you may receive messages that cause you to be concerned about losing essential data or information. When your hard disc becomes corrupted, the Microsoft operating system can no longer read or access it.
The following are some of the most well-known causes of hard drive failures:

Machine Heating up

Computers can overheat if you conduct too many actions at once, use too many software or apps, or use them excessively.

Fluctuations in Voltage

Voltage spikes or shortages can cause catastrophic damage to the gadget. A thunderstorm or a sudden blackout can both result in a corrupt drive.

Hardware Impairment

Any harm to the hard drive caused by inappropriate device uses or unanticipated incidents might lead to critical damage to hard drives. Aside from these issues, hard drive crashes can also happen due to manufacturing flaws, system issues, or virus infestations. There may be a weird humming noise from the drive, frequent error messages, and disturbance computer functionality for such conditions. All of these are indicated hard drive failure. If you find yourself in this circumstance, stop using the computer. Another typical blunder is failing to empty or clear the recycling bin.

Retrieve Data via Disk Management Utility

Once your hard drive fails or becomes corrupted, your data may become inaccessible. To retrieve all your data, use the Disk Management Utility for Mac and Windows.
To restore your data, follow these steps:

For Microsoft Windows:

  • Tap (Windows + X) and then select the Disk Management option.
  • Browse the hard drive that crashed in the Disk Management panel.
  • If you can find the drive, you can now format it to fix any errors and make the information accessible.
  • Beware! While using the procedure to restore a logically damaged hard disc may result in the loss of all data. Maintain backups of your data or use recovery tools to restore your contents.

For Apple MacBook:

  • Using Spotlight (Command + Space), open Disk Utility.
  • Select the disk, then tap First Aid.
  • After running First Aid, you’ll know if Disk Utility found or rectified any problems.
  • After completing these procedures, your hard drive will be fixed and ready to use.

Retrieve Data via CMD Prompt

Another option for repairing a corrupted or crashed hard drive is to run the CMD or Command Prompt. While it may look a little complicated, the CHKDSK command on your laptop or computer is used to repair errors.

Here is how to use the CHKDSK command to restore your hard drive:
By tapping (Windows + X), open the Command Prompt (Admin) option.
To inspect the faults on your damaged hard drive, type “chkdsk” and press Enter.
Run “chkdsk C: /f /r/x” to recover the drive.

How to Prevent Loss of Data from a Hard Drive

Don’t use the computer if you hear weird noises, such as grinding. Before you stop using the computer, run the backup feature to build a backup.

Identify what pieces of information or data you want to back up and how you want to back those up. Have the appropriate backup software to replicate your data and sufficient storage space swiftly. You can save them in the same drive or Google drive.

Check any highly harmful actions, such as removing files, to assure you have the correct data. Carelessness can result in unintentional data loss that might have been easily prevented.

To Conclude

When confronted with data loss on a device that can still be used and recognized by your operating system, your first option should be to run backup software to save all your valuable data. It’s a simple method that can restore your data with only a few taps.

If the drive is damaged and cannot be accessible by your system, a software solution is insufficient. You must work with a trustworthy data recovery computer service facility to recover your data. Whatever data loss problem you are suffering from, the specialists will always have a solution.